Two Wheels. One Dark Lord.

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Snow ride

Decided to get off my fat lardy ass and get a ride in. Good for me, because I’m fat and lardy. Anyhow, I dug out my old Swobo LS jersey from 1999 and packed myself in nice and snug. My new Brooks saddle was on my new NC17 seatpost and ready to be broken-in. Slowly. Keys? Check. Tunes? Check. Water? You betcha. Let’s get ‘er done.
As I headed out I realized it was a nip colder than I thought. -0.4 to be precise. ‘Well, no biggie.’ I thought. ‘I’ll warm up when I’m in the sun and moving.’
WRONG.

The first ice patch that took me down, well… it was a losing fight. By the time I got to the forest’s edge, I was warm enough, coughing up greenish-grey blobs from the depths of my lungs and smiling. At least there was a layer of crunchy snow to cover the ice. Did it just get colder? Yup. -1.6c. Damn… this is gonna suck in a bit. Further along (about 30 min in, to be honest…) I decided to snap some pics, got cold and headed back home with my bronchitis lungs alternately pleading with me and scorning my existence. Begging me to ‘Just stay on the couch and have a few beers. We don’t need to do this ever again.’

Maybe it’s got something there. Maybe not. You can read all my misadventures here. Yeah, I have one of these bleaurgh things too.

When I was a kid I made my own. Upholstry tacks driven through a set of old tires from the inside. Adhesive tape to protect the tubes. Worked better than expected until the ‘rents couldn’t locate the new rolls of adhesive tape……. then… Worth it, Oh yea!

Mikey-if you want them light then just spring for the nokian. I used Kenda Stick-E Nevegal 2.3 with approx 60 sheetmetal screws in each tire and they heavier than just about anything available commercially. They only costed me 30 bucks, a couple of beers, and hour or two and a couple drops of blood.

backwards— Word. Weight isn’t really much of an issue when you’re just riding to the store or the bar, they’re only a mile or two away from the cabin. I should just buy a set and take a run at ‘er. Peak winter weekends at Snoqualmie Pass can be literally gridlocked. It takes forever to drive there, and you lose your precious parking space if you move. If I was a real smartass, I’d put a ski rack on the bike. How about an SPD cleat on a skate-skiing bootie? Ha! I’ll be rich! Don’t you bastards try to copy me.

As for mathbach and Brooks Saddles… Once they break in, they are good for life. Not good for life as in 2 years is the lifespan of many bike parts, but good for life as in I know people who have had a Brooks for 20+ years on their road bikes.

Considering the very nature of riding on dirt, yes, it can be an expensive investment, but isn’t your ass worth it? I don’t get all crazy-go-nuts with a fully rigid like I do with my FS Bullitt, so there’s a very small chance of it getting shredded in less than 8-10 years under my sorry ass.

Dont some of you roadies drop 100 for a Selle or Fizik or whatever saddle costs some god-awful amount?

I just went with two Brooks Swift saddles for my two main Betties. One used ti, the other brand new with steel rails. I think that every 2 years replacing a Terry saddle for $100 is an OK investment. (and then I always hang on to the ‘beater’ saddle because who the hell can throw away titanium?) $350 for a Brooks is for the long haul. How else can one month’s salary last forever?

350 is a rip-off. I just found my model (the Alp d-Huez) online for 187. Sure you can drop 300+ for one of the super-duper Ti ones, but really… who are you kidding? You’re not that fast. None of us here are.

Save yourself the money and embarassment and get the B17 for 130 or the Team Professional for 120. They will be more than enough for us barstool racers.